Contents

History

History at a glance

Bluefield Colored Institute

1895–1932

Bluefield State Teachers College

1932–1943

Bluefield State College

1943–present

Originally known as the Bluefield Colored Institute, the college was founded in 1895 as a "high graded school" for African American youth in the nearby area.[2] It was located on a 4-acre (0.016 km2) site in Bluefield, a city within 100 miles of 70% of West Virginia's black citizens. The school began modestly with 40 pupils under the supervision of Principal Hamilton Hatter. Nathan Cook Brackett, an abolitionist who led Storer College, served as president of the Board of Regents.[3] Hatter oversaw the construction of Mahood Hall, the administrative building, as well as Lewis Hall and West Hall dormitories. Hatter was an energetic leader who built the foundation of the College. He faced enormous challenges, running the institution with no legislative appropriations whatsoever for two years.

In the late 1920s, the students and staff of the school referred to it as "Bluefield Institute", but this name was never sanctioned by the West Virginia legislature.[4]
In 1906, Hatter handed the reins of leadership at BCI to Robert P. Sims, a graduate of Hillsdale College, who would lead Bluefield State for three decades. Sims showed dedication, commitment, and prudent management in his lengthy tenure at Bluefield State. By adopting formal teacher training--"normal education"—in 1909, Sims created the role that Bluefield State would play, educating educators throughout the coalfields, fulfilling the mission of its enabling legislation.

Enrollment climbed to 235 by 1920, with annual summer sessions for teacher certification attracting hundreds more. With efficient professional management and careful supervision, the College prospered, expanding to 23 acres, adding Payne Hall and colonnaded Conley Hall, faculty residences, and the stately President's House. Enrollment soon exceeded six hundred, many of whom lived on the close-knit campus, termed the "terraced hills" for its verdant landscaping. Grateful graduates created the Alumni Association to rekindle collegiate memories and support programs of the institution. BSC students achieved notable distinction in a wide variety of fields.

Sims and his successor, Academic Dean and BCI alumnus Henry Dickason, president from 1936-1952, managed this growth with patience and resourcefulness. Bluefield State Teachers College, as the institution was renamed in 1931, was at the center of the rich cultural world of African-American society. Although the rough and tumble bituminous coalfields were far from the urban and sophisticated east coast, Sims and Dickason managed to involve their college heavily in the explosion of black American culture known as the "Harlem Renaissance," bringing Langston Hughes to read poetry, John Hope Franklin to teach Negro History, and even heavyweight champion Joe Louis to box exhibitions in Arter Gymnasium. Fats Waller, Duke Ellington, Dizzie Gillespie, and Count Basie entertained the active Greek-letter fraternities and sororities. Bluefield State's "Big Blue" football team twice won national Negro College Athletic Association championships in the late 1920s.

A 1929 survey of the 702 alumni of Bluefield State demonstrated the college's wide-ranging influence. There were no fewer than 326 school teachers, among dozens of administrators, physicians, pharmacists, ministers, businessmen and homemakers. The name "Bluefield State College" was adopted in 1943. After a half-century of inadequate salaries, extreme sacrifice, and passionate dedication, Bluefield State was finally awarded full academic accreditation in 1947, rewarding the institution's measured progress.By September 1954, the state-supported colleges in West Virginia were integrated. Three white students (James Ernest Watkins, Joseph Tice and Douglas Ralph Whittaker) in a total body of 354 enrolled at Bluefield State.

By the 1960s, the College had a comprehensive four-year program of teacher education, arts and sciences, and engineering technology. Gradually a variety of two-year technical programs evolved in response to local needs.

During the late 1960s, black students protested that the state was transforming the school from a traditional black college to a white commuter college. One of the allegations made was that black faculty and staff were being fired and replaced by less qualified white personnel. On November 21, 1968, the racial tensions culminated in the bombing of the gymnasium. A $5,000 reward was offered by Governor Hulett C. Smith. Ironically, the administration responded by immediately closing the dormitories, which housed a significant percentage of the college's out-of-state black student population, hastening the transition to a predominantly white college.[5]

Academics

Instructional programs are offered in engineering technologies, business, teacher education, arts and sciences, nursing and health science professions, and a variety of career fields. Students may also complete the non-traditional Regents Bachelor of Arts degree through Bluefield State College. The college is also dedicated to offering a wide variety of off campus courses at centers in Beckley, Lewisburg, Summersville and Welch, West Virginia.

As of 2017[update], Bluefield's student body is 63.31% female and 36.69% male.[8] Although Bluefield is a historically black college, its student body has the racial composition listed in the table.